Chelsea Football Club have confirmed that John Terry has signed a new one-year deal to stay at Stamford Bridge until 2017.
There has been some debate surrounding the future of the club captain, as his contract was due to expire this summer and the player admitted in January that he would be moving on from the Blues as they had not offered him a new deal. It was thought by some that Terry’s announcement at the turn of the year would spur the club on to make him an offer, but they declined the opportunity to do so.
Speaking after the club’s final Premier League game against Leicester City on Sunday, Terry made an emotional speech in which he appeared to cry and said that he wanted to be at Stamford Bridge next season. He said, “Everyone knows I’m Chelsea through and through. I am looking forward to next season under the new manager and hopefully we can make it a successful one”.
Some of the question marks surrounding Terry’s future revolved around the situation regarding the club’s manager. Guys Hiddink arrived in December on an interim basis, replacing the sacked Jose Mourinho. Antonio Conte was confirmed as the next manager at Stamford Bridge earlier in the year, but he won’t take his post officially until he has led Italy to the European Championships in France this summer.
Conte favours a system that employs three centre-backs, suggesting that there could yet be room for Terry in the Chelsea squad moving forward. However the club confirmed last Friday that it had offered the former England captain a ‘different role’ at the club in their one year contract. It has not been made clear what that different role entails, though the fact that Terry has agreed to the contract suggests that at least some playing time will be part of it.
The 35-year-old made his Chelsea debut in 1998 and has so far gone on to play 703 games for the club in all competitions. During his time under the ownership of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich he has won four Premier League titles, three League Cups, five FA Cups and one each of the Europa League and the Champions League.
Chairman Bruce Buck said of Terry’s decision to sign the new contract, “We are delighted John will spend another year at the club. He has been the leader of the Chelsea squad throughout the most successful period in our history. He recently reached the 700-appearance mark, which is testament to his professionalism and dedication as well as his undoubted talent”.